First televised October 6, 1998. Première diffusion française, le 16
octobre1999
Guest Starring Kristine Sutherland (Joyce Summers), NancyLenehan, and Armin Shimerman
(Principal Snyder); Written by Marti Noxon; Directed by James Whitmore Jr.; Edited by Skip
MacDonald
Intro: Buffy unpacks and moves back into her room at home. Joyce hangs
some Nigerian art in the house. Buffy finds Xander, Willow, Oz, and Cordelia, and fights
off a vampire.
Act 1: The gang goes
to visit Giles. Things are a little tense, and Giles is particularly reserved. The next
day, Joyce and Buffy 
meet with Snyder-he won't let Buffy back in school (he expelled her in
"Becoming, Part 2" last season). Joyce threatens to go to the mayor if
necessary, which Snyclerfinds "interesting." Buffy finds a dead cat in her
basement. That night as Buffygoes to sleep, the Nigerian mask glows, and the cat comes
backto life.
Act 2: Buffy dreams of walking through a deserted high school and talking with Angel. The next morning the Cat wanders into the house; Giles cages it and takes it to the library to study it. Giles notices the Nigerian mask at the house. That evening, everyone is overfordinner. Pat (from Joyce's bookclub) drops by. Oz brings his band. Buffy seems lost in the crowd. The mask glows; a crime victim and burn victim come to "life." Buffy overhears her room say that in some ways, having Buffy back makes things worse. Buffy begins packing; outside the "undead" amass.
Act3: At the library, Giles learns about the Nigerian mask. Willow confronts Buffy-she's angry at Buffy for leaving. Mom enters and warns Buffy not to run away again. The party stops as Buffy and mom argue. Xander says Buffy was incredibly selfish and stupid." Suddenly the undead crash through the windows and attack.
Act 4: Giles arrives
and says the mask is causing the problem-and if someone puts it on, they become "the
demon incarnate." Pat puts on the mask. Buffy and Pat fight. In the front yard, Buffy
embeds a shovel in demon Pat's head (through the eyes). Pat disappears, along with all the
undead. Buffy and Willow hug. The next day, Giles threatens Snyder (on his way to a
meeting with the mayor) to letBuffy back in school. At lunch, Willow tells Buffy that
she's been studying witchcraft.
COMMENTS: As daring
of a series as Buffy appears to be at times, "Dead Man's Party" reveals that the
series still works within a fairly narrow spectrum. The scenes of human drama and
emotional angst are as effective as have ever been done on the series. equal to the second
season's "Innocence." But they are. offset by a ridiculous Night of the Living
Dead-like supernatural subplot that merely distracts from the more interesting drama of
Buffy's attempt to reunite with her mom and friends.
The "undead" aspect of "Dead Man's Party" isn't superfluous - there is
a bit of closure that comes by requiring Buffy to use her powers and save the day in front
of mom and friends. The analogy of -buried things" coming back to haunt people-voiced
by
Xander-actually isn't bad. But certainly the producers could have created something more
interesting than this fired scenario.
The unfortunate thing is that when writer Noxon isn't having to shoehorn in the zombie
plot, her writing is in top form. supplemented by marvelous performances by the actors.
The uneasiness that hangs in the air during the initial meeting with Giles is perfect, and
as in "Anne", Anthony Head tums in an extraordinary performance.
Noxon's second home nin is the party-stopping argument aniong Buffy and her morn arid
friends. The real surprise here is the degree to which Xander unloads on Buffy. Perhaps
lie is still a little jealous of the relationship that Angel had with her, though
considering his present situation with Cordelia, that doesn't quite make sense. Whatever
the case, Nicholas Brenclon turns in one of his best performances ever in this episode.
Most astounding, however, is Sarah Michelle Gellar's work. Beginning with the scene in
which Willow confronts Buffy about running away, and continuing into the argument with Mom
and Xander, Gellar portrays a Buffy who looks like she is about to suffer a mental
breakdown. Having this interrupted by zonibies crashing through the window releases some
tension (not necessarily a bad thing) but also fritters away an opportunity for more
profound human insights, instead opting for a generic TV moment.
By the end, everything gets wrapped up fairly neatly. Buffy will be back in school, and
she and Willow are best friends again. Buffy even lets pass Willow's news that she's been
studying witchcraft. In Spectrum 14 we wrote that it---would be interesting to see
[Buffy's situation] take a few episodes to be resolved next year and not have everything
completely wrapped up in the season premiere." The producers ended up taking two
episodes, which is better than it could have been. And Buffy's summer flight will continue
to impact events for some time.